Box Score
EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – West Chester survived a furious comeback bid by host East Stroudsburg in the game’s final six minutes to escape Koehler Fieldhouse with a 56-54 upset victory in PSAC East men’s basketball competition Saturday afternoon.
East Stroudsburg (13-4, 2-1 PSAC East) erased a seven-point deficit with an 8-0 run over a 4:16 span that gave the Warriors a 54-53 advantage with 1:56 left on the clock. However, Ralph Hegamin converted a conventional three-point play with 1:26 left to put West Chester (9-8, 1-2) back on top for good.
With under one minute left to go, Stroudsburg was still bidding for the win, when Josh Wentz missed a 3-point attempt and teammate Dawud Lyons hauled down the offensive rebound. Fortunately for the Golden Rams, freshman guard Aaron Smith caused a turnover with 41 seconds still remaining.
West Chester called timeout, but Kehinde Roberts gave the ball right back to the Warriors with 29 ticks left. ESU’s Pat Fleury missed another 3-point attempt with four seconds to go, and Chris Bach came up with yet another huge offensive rebound for the hosts.
However, his put back with two ticks left didn’t fall and Hegamin corralled the board as time expired.
The win was West Chester’s first league victory of the year and came over an East Stroudsburg squad that was tied for first place and undefeated in PSAC play entering the afternoon.
West Chester had used a 9-2 run of its own in the latter stages of the second half to break a 44-all tie and go up 53-46 with 6:24 remaining. East Stroudsburg answered that 9-2 spurt with its 8-0 run to go up by one with just under two minutes left.
ESU came out of the gates strong in the first half, looking like the first-place team that they were. The Warriors jumped on top early, 21-10, at the 8:20 mark of the opening frame. That is when West Chester put it all together and began its long climb back, fueled by sophomore co-captain Kenneth St. George.
St. George accounted for 11 points during a 14-2 West Chester run that gave the visitors a 24-23 lead with 3:25 left in the first half. Fellow co-captain and senior Lenwood Greenwood hit a 3-pointer during that stretch as well.
St. George finished with a game-high 20 points while Greenwood scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Roberts chipped in 14 points for the Golden Rams as well.
West Chester shot an astonishing 91 percent from the foul line (11 of 12) with St. George a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe. In such a tight game all the way to the final buzzer, it was the foul shots that helped the Rams bust their season-long four-game losing streak and shock the rest of the PSAC at the same time.
The Golden Rams got all 56 points from four starters. Hegamin finished with seven tallies to complement his three teammates in double figures. West Chester’s bench did not register a point. Aaron Smith, the only starter not to score, finished with three assists and three steals, including the swipe with 41 seconds left that gave WCU the ball.
West Chester returns home on Wednesday evening for another PSAC East battle with Bloomsburg at Hollinger Field House. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. The game can be heard on WCUR-FM 91.7 or online at www.redzonemedia.com or www.wcur.fm. A win over the rival Huskies would even the Golden Rams’ league record and put the young team right back into the thick of a playoff chase.
